


The Chrysanthemum Grave

by rx_rx



Category: Original Work
Genre: Angst, Developing Friendships, Disability, Drug Addiction, Emotional Manipulation, F/M, Horror, Human Experimentation, M/M, Medical Torture, Moral Dilemmas, Nihilism, Possessive Behavior, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Science Fiction, Slow Burn, Substance Abuse, Suicide, Trauma, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-29
Updated: 2017-03-29
Packaged: 2018-10-12 11:05:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10489485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rx_rx/pseuds/rx_rx
Summary: Novella. This story chronicles two boys post-apocalyptic lives as they confront issues involving a numerous ethical and moral dilemmas under a decentralized ruling faction. Long series of short chapters with illustrations.





	

The woman had clothes blackened with dirt with burn marks blooming across her bare flesh. Limbs dangled like broken branches. Scars ravaged down her back, peeling charred skin away to reveal a layer that was bleeding raw. Her body was naked; her eyes were dead, but she was very much alive. The scent of disease was heavy around her when Callus first saw administrators carry the unconscious woman through the front barricade of the communal asylum.

Ar'yel dropped to his knees, angled the woman's head back, one hand supporting his neck while the other hovered over his mouth and nose.

"What's he doing?" Mordecai wondered aloud. Dozens of other children huddled around him in the foyer, crowding around Callus. It was difficult to see. There were no windows in the communal asylum. A concave roof loomed overhead. An air-mitigation machine droned in a corner. Its purpose was to expel any atmospheric toxins that may have seeped into this room from the outside world. Every building and fortress in Artica was fortified with a ventilation system similar to this - technology capable of neutralizing even the most deadly toxins and rendering the most poisonous air breathable.

Callus dared a peek at the woman. The answer to Mordecai's question was obvious. Ar'yel was checking to see if the woman was still breathing.

"It was a mistake bringing her here, Ar'yel," one of the administrators berated him.

"I couldn't leave her there," he replied.

* * *

_**Callus - The Chrysanthemum Grave** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This entire idea has been fairly experimental for a while. Hope to see this version to the end. This illustration was created by the very talented Nanfe.


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